Set-top boxes (STBs), televisions, digital video disc (DVD) players, digital video recorders (DVRs), personal video recorders (PVRs), video cassette recorders (VCRs), etc. are being used to provide an increasing number of services to users. As the number of services and the complexity of the hardware have increased, new user interfaces have been developed to assist users in entering and receiving information.
FIG. 1 illustrates a typical user interface 100. A user can navigate through the elements in folder 102 by pressing right and left keys on a remote control device to move elements under focus pointer 112. The user can also navigate through the elements in folder 104 by pressing up and down keys on the remote control. As is apparent from FIG. 1, additional folders and bookmarks may be displayed by entering the appropriate commands. For example, when element 106 is under focus pointer 112 and the user presses the right key on the remote control, element 108 comes into view and element 110 is removed from user interface 100. Focus pointer 112 remains stationary while elements in folders 102 and 104 move under focus pointer 112 in response to commands from a user.
User interface 100 can only be used to organize a limited number of elements. Therefore, there exists a need in the art for user interface systems and methods that allow users to organize increasing numbers of media types with more functionality without substantially increasing the complexity of the user interface.